Al Pacino Book:

Films of Al Pacino: William Schoell (Citadel Film Series) Reviews:
awful commentary, but nice pictures
2005-06-07 - Don't get me wrong, I've been a fan of Al Pacino ever since I saw him in "The Godfather" when I was ten, and I personally love everything about him. He's one of the gods of acting, and Schoell's book does no justice to him or his films.

The first 15 pages are some kind of attempt to outline his life. Some of the anecdotes are amusing; however, many sound more speculative than true. For example, the discussion of Al Pacino's love life reads like a gossip magazine. Maybe all of it really happened, but lines like "things went hot and heavy with Ms. Praeger for a while" and "there have also been many rumors about how Pacino managed to get by between acting gigs and part-time employment in the days before stardom" make the book sound cheesy and hokey.

I'm also not sure why the author chose to write a book about the films of Al Pacino, as he doesn't really like any of them. Even for the Godfather movies, two of the mostly widely revered movies of all the time, the author has only lukewarm praise at best, as shown when he says, "The Godfather is an 'amusing' potboiler but hardly a work of art..there isn't the care in each shot and setup that would indicate TRULY GREAT filmmaking...it lacks a subtext of humanity, people that we could root for and care about." I had to wonder if we were even watching the same movie. His criticism of the film is scanty at best, and he spends about a paragraph mentioning Pacino's performance, and somehow manages to ignore his wondrous transformation from Michael the naive, sweet war-hero to Michael the new Godfather. It is arguably cinema's finest portrayal of the "hardening of the human heart," and the author still can't find "a subtext of humanity."

His other reviews are also scanty at best and are mostly bogged down by plot summary. He seems fixated mainly on Pacino's appearance in the film, and not necessarily his wonderful performances. Now, again, don't get me wrong, I think Pacino is a very, very handsome, sexy, good-looking man, but we all know that. I wouldn't have a problem with the author mentioning it again and again, but it seems as if that is ALL the author wants to do. For example, he prefaces all his descriptions with comments like, "Although far more attractive than the real Sonny, Pacino does an excellent imitation of him" (Dog Day Afternoon), or "Pacino looks oddly geeky in the opening scenes, but is still attractive and masculine, 'lethal' to the ladies" (Panic in Needle Park). I completely agree that Pacino is a very attractive guy, but there needs to be more in a review than just that.

Another problem I had with this book was the numerous inaccuracies. In his review of "Dog Day Afternoon" (a wonderful movie, and his so-called review doesn't do the film justice at all), the author writes that "Pacino, (Chris) Sarandon, and (John) Cazale were all nominated for Oscars." No, Cazale was NOT nominated for an Oscar, despite appearing in only 5 films that were all Best Picture Oscar nominees. It isn't very relevant, admittedly, but this is just one example of the glaringly obvious inaccuracies in this book. Also, another reason to wonder if the author actually watched Pacino's movies at all is he often gets the quotes all wrong. Some are incomplete, some have words juggled around, and some are out-of-context. I've seen most of Pacino's films, and believe me, whether deliberate or not, the mishandling of Pacino's powerful lines detract from the films and Pacino's performances.

Also, the reviews of the films often contain many, many spoilers, so I would not recommend reading this before watching his movies (actually, there's no real need to read this at all). Al Pacino is a legend, and he deserves much more than this lame attempt. So, why did I give it two stars instead of one? Well, I suppose the book's saving grace is its wealth of lovely pictures, much of which I have never seen before. So, if you really want to buy the book, I suppose you can just buy it for its pictures, which only enhance the charm, grace, and magnetism of Al Pacino.

For real commentary of his performances, read Roger Ebert's reviews of Pacino's movies. Ebert adores the man, and has written numerous glowing reviews of his acting, even when he criticizes the movie as a whole. Check out, especially, his review of "Scarface."

Perfect Pacino
2001-06-12 - This was apresent for my husband, but I just had to read it first! Great book, gets right into the heart and soul of the man. Many stories and anecdotes I have not read before. Good buy!

Al is the man...
2000-09-19 - If u r a Al Pacino fan then this is the book u need .I my self love every litle thing about that man.Everything from his acting , his look , the way he dresses and his personality.But it was alot i didnt know about him wich i got answers to after reading William Schoells bok Al Pacino.